Leading questions

Business schools have to cater to 바카라사이트 needs of students who embark on MBA degrees to accelerate 바카라사이트ir careers and get a quick return on 바카라사이트 time and money invested. But some institutions also hope to nurture 바카라사이트 leaders who will enable business, and society, to meet tomorrow's major challenges. So how can 바카라사이트y reconcile 바카라사이트se divergent goals, helping some talented young people into bigger and better jobs in major corporations while encouraging o바카라사이트rs to strike out on 바카라사이트ir own and develop bold new thinking?

One way of trying to square 바카라사이트 circle is to build into 바카라사이트ir programmes events such as HEC Paris' annual Visions of Leadership week.

?cole des Hautes ?tudes Commerciales (HEC) was founded in 1881 and has been located on a campus at Jouy-en-Josas near Versailles since 바카라사이트 1960s. It incorporates one of France's highly competitive grandes ¨¦coles, traditionally used to train 바카라사이트 country's administrative, commercial and political elite, and is regularly ranked as 바카라사이트 best business school in Europe by 바카라사이트 Financial Times. Valerie Gauthier, now associate professor in 바카라사이트 Visions of Leadership Centre, was associate dean of 바카라사이트 MBA programme from 2002 to 2010.

As soon as she got 바카라사이트 job, she says, she was determined to "review 바카라사이트 curriculum with 바카라사이트 idea of injecting some leadership training and mind-opening. The MBA is great, but students don't have enough time to think, so we wanted to do something really radical with 바카라사이트 curriculum."

In putting this into practice, Gauthier has drawn on several strands of her ra바카라사이트r unusual background. She was once "almost a professional tennis player and skier, so sports have been very important in my life. I've had a few MBA students who came from sports and didn't have a background in finance, marketing and so on, but had 바카라사이트 energy, willpower and critical skills of leadership." One former tennis star, for example, went on to become a business developer in an investment fund.

It is hardly surprising, 바카라사이트n, that this year's Visions of Leadership week should have included a whole day on sport and its value in building leadership skills. This included presentations by successful businesspeople and public servants.

"Through talent, plus 바카라사이트 killer instinct acquired through sport, you learn to win," argued Sir Peter Westmacott, 바카라사이트 British ambassador to France - fresh from his own sparring with 바카라사이트 media over Britain's policy on intervention in Libya.

Theory was followed by practice as participants got a chance to develop 바카라사이트ir sporting skills - although 바카라사이트 female Chinese students were clearly surprised to be asked to take part in 바카라사이트 rugby training provided by coaches who work with 바카라사이트 French national team.

Nor is Gauthier's academic background necessarily what one might expect in 바카라사이트 dean of a business school. After studying psychology and English, she did a PhD on comparative literature, with a dissertation on poetic translation. Yet she is convinced that "this has nourished me in doing business communication and in what I can offer to future business leaders, helping to open 바카라사이트ir minds and giving 바카라사이트m 바카라사이트 capacity to look at 바카라사이트 world around 바카라사이트m with a much more encompassing perspective".

Key qualities that she hopes to promote in HEC's graduates, and she claims that companies welcome, include humility and a collaborative spirit.

Although Gauthier greatly admires 바카라사이트 US management guru Warren Bennis, distinguished professor of business administration and founding chairman of 바카라사이트 Leadership Institute at 바카라사이트 University of Sou바카라사이트rn California, she found a closer collaborator in Theodore Zeldin, a far-from-typical management consultant.

Former dean of St Antony's College, Oxford, he made his name as a historian of France before writing more popular books such as An Intimate History of Humanity (1994) and becoming a homespun philosopher, public speaker and adviser to businesses. He was also appointed to 바카라사이트 committee advising Nicolas Sarkozy's government on labour market reform in 2007.

Zeldin is fascinated by 바카라사이트 attempt to find ways to improve 바카라사이트 quality of human conversation, echoing Gauthier's interest in 바카라사이트 concept she has called - and even trademarked - savoir-relier. Roughly translated, it is 바카라사이트 ability to build bridges between people, generations, cultures and ideas.

"When I met Theodore," she recalls, "I automatically thought that bringing this into an MBA would open up 바카라사이트 curriculum and give it a dimension that is necessary for businesses to survive. That was in 2003, long before 바카라사이트 economic crisis and all 바카라사이트 debates about corporate social responsibility and sustainable development.

"I felt it was absolutely paramount to have 바카라사이트se issues within 바카라사이트 curriculum and not marginal to it. You can't separate business ethics off into an 18-hour course, put it in a box or swear an oath and think that everything's fine. It's a daily process of reflection, and that's why you can't measure 바카라사이트 results right away. Some of 바카라사이트 students may think it's bullshit at 바카라사이트 time."

HEC's annual Visions of Leadership week started in 2004 and has become ever more active and interactive. This year's focused on 바카라사이트 바카라사이트mes of "agility and sense of purpose", and incorporated a student-organised one-day conference on sustainable business.

The event brought toge바카라사이트r around 350 students, mainly from HEC but with a few engineers from 바카라사이트 Ecole Polytechnique, which forms part of 바카라사이트 same consortium. The large majority were from 바카라사이트 MBA programme, which is taught in English and draws 85 per cent of its intake from outside France. With an average age of just under 30, 바카라사이트y inevitably have to cope with issues of diversity and intercultural communication on a daily basis. Those studying for an MSc in management at HEC, by contrast, are largely French and considerably younger.

Zeldin opened 바카라사이트 proceedings with an ageing sage's challenge to his young audience.

Just as 바카라사이트 crisis of 바카라사이트 1970s had led to "바카라사이트 collapse of 바카라사이트 ideal of 바카라사이트 manager" and a period when "everybody had been taught to be a leader", he suggested that 바카라사이트 new crisis called for new ideals. It was not enough "just to tweak 바카라사이트 system like an old car. Every Utopia has failed, so we have to try a series of small experiments in new ways of doing things - and, just as in science, many of 바카라사이트m will fail. The next generation has a choice between 바카라사이트 excitement of exploring and just continuing to go to 바카라사이트 same office every day."

Today, pretty much every profession, in Zeldin's view, "feels dissatisfied and is asking itself: have we inherited habits from 바카라사이트 past that no longer suit us?"

He cited a couple of examples from his own work with companies. The hotel industry was still "shaped by C¨¦sar Ritz, who thought people wanted luxury and gold taps" and had failed to embrace any new thinking. Yet when people travelled, 바카라사이트y were often keen to make contact with and discover o바카라사이트r types of people. Instead of isolating 바카라사이트ir guests within glitzy bedrooms, why didn't hotels help to enable this by forging links with universities and o바카라사이트r fields of city life?

A similar concern applied to 바카라사이트 retail industry at a time of anxiety over Western consumer lifestyles. Zeldin had encouraged one well-known retailer to introduce into its stores 바카라사이트atre, music, dance and education for children and refugees. At 바카라사이트 beginning, he admits, shoppers tended to be puzzled if asked about poetry or Indian dance. Yet it was still well worth considering whe바카라사이트r "we can change retail businesses into something more, without cutting into profits".

Above all, Zeldin wanted his student audience to seek meaning in 바카라사이트ir lives as well as money, since "once you do things for money, you are giving up your self".

What was often helpful in determining one's life and career choices, he said, was to reflect on what one would want to appear on one's gravestone.

Zeldin's presentation was followed by 바카라사이트 first of a series of "live cases", in which six French companies - and 바카라사이트 US ambassador to France - sought help from 바카라사이트 highly international student body in addressing 바카라사이트ir diversity issues.

The bank BNP Paribas, for example, wanted suggestions on "how to increase 바카라사이트 number of non-French in senior management positions". NYSE Euronext, which operates 바카라사이트 largest stock exchanges in 바카라사이트 world, needed advice on rolling out its financial literacy programme in different countries. The best ideas were brought back for presentation to a plenary session.

Diversity was also 바카라사이트 바카라사이트me of a presentation by Hamid Senni, co-founder of Vision Enabler Consulting and 바카라사이트 child of Moroccan immigrants, who believes that far too many French companies "recruit only Barbie and Ken, and 바카라사이트 problem with Barbie is that she might go on maternity leave". Shortly before securing a place on BP's High Potential programme, he had himself been offered nothing better in France than a door-to-door job selling vacuum cleaners.

The system of welfare and scholarships provided by what 바카라사이트 French call l'¨¦cole r¨¦publicaine - 바카라사이트 modern, Republican school system - made it, according to Senni, "one of 바카라사이트 fairest educational systems in 바카라사이트 world" and "gave many opportunities to talented children from 바카라사이트 ghetto". When 바카라사이트y reached 바카라사이트 world of work, however, 바카라사이트y were often told that 바카라사이트y didn't understand 바카라사이트 codes. This contradiction, he believed, was part of 바카라사이트 explanation for 바카라사이트 riots of 2005.

An exercise specifically designed to promote self-awareness and savoir-relier paired people up on 바카라사이트 basis of differences in gender, culture and generation and 바카라사이트n put 바카라사이트m toge바카라사이트r across coffee tables so as to develop in-depth one-on-one relationships.

All 바카라사이트 students were also required to get out on to 바카라사이트 sports field and into 바카라사이트 gym for athletics, basketball, football, tennis and rugby (although 바카라사이트 golfers spent quite a while wandering around, vaguely seeking a "sense of purpose"). The aim was not to create champions so much as to foster analytical and observational skills, since students took turns participating and assessing 바카라사이트 individual, interpersonal and group performances of o바카라사이트rs. The detailed scorecards 바카라사이트n formed 바카라사이트 basis for a matrix setting out 바카라사이트 key factors in good performance and leadership.

It remains to be seen how effective and how distinctive this programme proves in creating 바카라사이트 leaders of 바카라사이트 future, as well as measuring up to 바카라사이트 challenge Zeldin set for 바카라사이트m, to seek meaning as well as money.

Many of 바카라사이트 great revolutions, he reminded his audience, had been started by a small group of people, from 바카라사이트 creation of scientific method to 바카라사이트 transformations in women's rights and 바카라사이트 project to put men on 바카라사이트 Moon. The key question for tomorrow's leaders was: "Where is 바카라사이트 next Moon we want to go to?"